Jambs m



(No Model.)

J. M. SEYMOUR.

AUTOMATIC FAN.

Patented, Aug. 28, 1883.

l lll f p ||W///////////l////////////// f/////////////////,/////.8|g|W///////// ///A\\ UNITED STATES PATENTQQEFMXQE JAMES M. SEYMOUR, OFNEVARK, NEW JERSEY.

AUTOMATIC FAN.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 284,077, dated August28, 1.883.

Application filed May 31, 1883. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern,

Beit known that I, JAMES M. SEYMOUR, a

citizen of the United States, residing in the city of Newark, in thecounty of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Suspended Fans, fully described and representedin the following specification and the accompanying drawings, forming apart of the saine. This invention relates to an improvemen in the rotary`fans suspended from the ceilings of offices, counting-rooms, Snc., to,agitate the air in warm weather. A series of such fans are usuallyconnected with a main drivingshaft by cords or belts, so as to revolvewhen the shaft is in motion, and such fans are thus operated during theentire time that they are connected with the driving-shaft, eachfanconsisting of two or more radial inclined blades attached to a hub whichrotates and swings them around as long as it is affected by the motivepower. When it is desired to stop a single fan of such a series, it hasbeen customary to climb up to the line-shaft and throw off the beltanoperation of avery troublesome nature, and necessitating a repetition ofthe same trouble if the belt is to be replaced. The construction for thedriving apparatus of such fans has notvbeen provided with any stepmotionhitherto, partly because the fan-wings rotate in a large circle beneaththe suspending hanger and pulley, and render any connection with thesaid hanger from beneath impossible;

but finding that, in such places as restaurants, there is a frequentnecessity to stop the movement of the fan, I have devised a connectionto the driving mechanism through the center of the pendent shaft, andthus afforded the means of acting upon the fan from the floor, andwithout deranging the belt in any manner.

The nature of my invention will bc understood from the annexed drawings,in which--v Figure 1 is a side view of a rotary fan of the usualpattern, suspended from a ceiling, A, by hanger B and upright shaft O.Eig. 2 is a central sectional view ofthe driving-pulley D and thatportion of the shaft O which passes through it. Eig. 3 is a side view,partly in section, of the fan E, having the clutch meehanism applieddirectly to it instead of to the driving-pulley, as in Fig. 1. Fig. 4 isa side view of the same with a clutch of different construction.

The invention consists in the application to the driving-shaft of a pinor clutching-piece to engage the pulley or fan hub, in combination witha shifting-rod, inserted inside the drivingshaft and extended below therotating fan, to be operated from the iioor.

The fan-blades are secured to a hub, E, in the usual manner, the latterbeing attached to the lower end of the upright shaft O, so that theblades may rotate without interfering at all with the hanger B.

The driving-pulley D is sustained between bearings B in the hanger, andis usually, with the hub E, fixed to rotate with tlie shaft C.

In my invention either the pulley or hub is fitted to revolve looselyupon the shaft, and

is only attached thereto by the operation of 7o the clutching apparatus.

In Fig. 1 the pulley is made loose upon the shaft, so that it may rotatecontinuously, and the shaft be connected with it only at the pleasure ofthe operator. Y

The clutch mechanism is shown in Figs. l and 2, and consists in atransverse pin, a, inserted across the shaft beneath the end of thepulley-hub D and fastened into a shifting-rod, b, which is inserted in acentral bore, d, formed inside the shaft O. The pulley-hub is providedwith a notch, c, and the shaft is slotted at f to coincide with thenotch, so that the pin may be pushed upward into the notch by press inguponthe lower end of the rod b. To make the latter more accessible tothe operator, it may be extendedjdownward any distance below the hangeror fan, and to prevent the oil in the bearing B from dripping down therod, it is preferably terminated with an oil-cup, G, which also servesas a handle in pushing up the rod to operate the clutch. In cases wherethe ceiling is high the rod may be supplemented below the oil-cup by awire, b, terminated by a knob, ball, or handle, and the latter may beswiveled to the wire, so as to remain stationary in the hand when thewire or rod is rotating, as by the washers h h (shown fastened to thewire in Fig. 4) at each side of the ball H.

In Fig. 1 itis obvious that the transverse clutching-pin a requires asuitable recess into principle may be embodied in other construcwhich itcan retire when it is withdrawn from the notch c in the pulley-hub. Acollar, I, is therefore inserted between the hub D and the lowerbearing, B', and a recess, e, is formed in it, coinciding with the slotin the shaft C. The collar is secured by a set-screw, s, to the shaft,

. so that it rotates with the latter and with the pin c, which is thusalways adapted to be pulled down into the recess e at any time after ithas been clutched into the notch in the pulley. 'I he pulley maytherefore be ro'- turned around upon the shaft C by loosening` 7o tatedcontinuously, while the shaft and fan stand still, unless. connected tothe pulley by pushing up the pin. The notch c may be made a little widerat its bottom, as shown in Fig. l, to keep the pin a in place whilerotating; but in practice the resistance of the air to the fan keeps thepin in the notch by friction. When the motive power stops, the pinsautomatically drop, and all the fans in the series are thus disengagedwhen the power starts, rendering it much easier'to set the shafting inmotion, and avoiding the slipping and displacement ofthe main belts. Asrequired, each fan may be started bypushing up the clutch-rod, andshould any particular fan in the series make more air than is wanted,

it can be instantly stopped by pulling down the rod. Two otherconstructions are shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the clutch-pin in both of thembeing arranged beneath the hub of the fan, and the latter constructed torotate loosely upon the shaft C until clutched thereto, the shaft andpulley D being fixed together, as heretofore.

F is the fan-hub, shown with socket F', in

which the shanks Zof the fan-blades are secured by screws m, as usual.

I is the supporting-collar, upon which the hub rests, being placed belowthe hub in Fig. 3, and provided with a recess, e, to receive the pin cwhen pulled down, the hub F being provided Vwith a notch, c, like hub D.The oilcup in this gure is shown as the handle to move the rod a.

The collar I is shown in Fig. 4 inserted in a counterbore in the lowerside of hub F, andpinned to the shaft at n to support the weight of thefan. The hub is shown provided with clutch-teeth o, and the pin c iscombined with a clutclrcollar, c', having` similar teeth, o', whichengage with the hub F when the rod b is pushed up. The rod is shown inthis figure with a handle, but no oil-cup.

Having thus shown several methods of carrying out my invention, it isobvious that the tions, and the clutch device beapplied to the top ofthe hubs D or F, 0r to other parts con- 6o nected with the pulley D," orfan-hub F, by which they could be propelled as desired. It will be seen,therefore, that the essential feature of the invention is thecombination, with y any suitable clutch mechanism, of a rod, as b,depending from the shaft below the fan-hub, so that the clutch may beoperated without interference from the fan-blades.

The collar I (shown in Figs. 1 and 3) may be the fastening set-screw s,and the recess e may thus be turned away from the slotf to prevent theescape of the pin from the notch c. When thus arranged, the pin isprevented from dropping and disengaging the fan-hub from its shaft whenthe power stops.

I claim my invention as follows: t

l. The combination, with the hollow fanshaft, the fan, and suitableclutching mechanism, of a shifting-rod, b, depending from the So centerof the shaft below the fan-blades, as set forth.

2. The combination, with the hollow fanshaft, the pulley D, and fan-hubF, of the notch in the hub, fitted to turn on the shaft, the 8 5shifting-rod inside the shaft, and the pin operating through a slot inthe shaft to engage the notch, substantially as shown and described.

3. The combination, with the hollowshaft C and hub fitted to rotateloosely thereon,of 9o the supporting-collar I, the shifting-rod insidethe shaft, and the clutch-pin c, operating through a slot in the shaftto clutch the hub, the collar having recess e and set-screw s, andconstructed to turn on the shaft, as and for the purpose set forth.

4. The combination, with j[he fan-shaft, the fan, and their clutchingmechanism, of a shifting-rod depending from the center of the shaft,

.and an oil-cup attached thereto, as and for the roo

